Coin-actuated device



' July 28, 1925.

1,547,277 c. H. WHEELER COIN ACTUATED DEVICE Filed March 25. 1923 Patented July 28, 1925.

UNITED STATES PATENT orrlca.

CLYDE I-I. WHEELER, OF MIDLAND PARK,'INEW JERSEY, ASSIGNOB TO WESTERN ELECTRIC COMPANY, INCORPORATED, OF NEW YORK,

NEW YORK.

N. Y., A CORPORATION OF COIN-ACTUATED DEVICE.

Application filed March 23, 1923. Serial No. 627,108.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, CLYDE H. WHEELER, a citizen of the United States, residing at borough of Midland Park, in the county of Bergen, State of New Jersey, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Coin-Actuated Devices, of which the follow ing is a full, clear, concise, and exact description.

This invention relates to coin actuated devices and particularly to a trigger for use therein.

It is an object of the invention to provide a new and improved trigger which is simple in construction, cheap in cost, and which is not subject to false operation from jarring.

It is common practice in coin actuated devices to employ a trigger which functions under theweight of a falling coin to operate an electrical switching device. One such form of device is shown, for example, in Patent No. 1,117 ,485, granted to O. F. Forsberg, November 17 1914, where the trigger arm is provided with an upwardly pro ect ing portion which acts as a rest for a pivoted switch arm. This switch arm is so tensioned that it presses against the projecting portion of the trigger and is moved down when the projectin portion is rotated out of its path when the trigger is tripped by a falling coin. In such devices it is desirable to make the moving parts light and free from friction in order that the energy stored up in the falling coin may be employed largely in overcoming the pressure of the switching springs, thus permitting the use of satisfactory contact'pressure even when operating with light and sticky coins. By reducing the friction of the moving parts, however, another difficulty is encountered in that the device becomes sensitive to jarring, thus making false operation possible. The present invention is directed particularly to the novel construction of the projecting portion of the trigger which operates the switch arm and by means of which the positive and accurate operation of the parts is obtained.

Other features and advantages of the invention will appear from a consideration of the following'description taken in connection with the accompanying drawing in which Fig. 1 is a perspective view showing a trigger embodying the invention adapted for use in connection with a coin hopper, and

Fig. 2 is an enlarged fragmentary view of the trigger disclosed in Fig. 1.

Referring to the drawing, a coin hopper 5 is provided with longitudinal slots '6 through which projects the trigger arm 7 This trigger is pivotally mounted on a pin 8 in the supporting frame 9, which in turn is secured to the electromagnet 10. Resting on the upwardly extending projection 11 of the trigger is a right-angle switch arm 12 which is pivotally mounted upon the pin 13 and is provided with a downwardly extending arm 14 adapted to operate contact springs 15 in a well-known manner. The trigger is also provided with a U-shaped portion 16 to which may be riveted, or otherwise securely fastened, a flexible member 17, such as is disclosed in an application of Joseph P. J uley, Serial No. 420,477, filed October 29, 1920. The free end of this spring rests against the supporting member 9 and serves as a flexible stop member to arrest the movement of the trigger 7 when returning to its normal position. The top of the projecting portion 11 of the trigger upon which the switch arm 12 rests has heretofore been made of such shapes that the fall of alight coin such as a dimeinto the hopper was ineffective to operate the trigger or that the trigger could be tripped by slight jars imparted to the instrument. Applicant avoids these obj ectionablev features by providing the apex of the projection 11 with a cam surface which is obtained by describing an arc the center of which is located preferably on the vertical center line of and below this pivot point. The preferred length of the radius for the cam of the coin actuated triggers which have been in extensive use is .480, using as a center a point .167 below the pivot point of the trigger and on the vertical center line of this pivot point. As shown in Fig. 2, the left-hand portion of the upper surface of the projection 11 is practically a straight line which slopes gradually on the right of the vertical center line. There is also shown in dotted lines the rounded surface heretofore obtained by describing an are using the pivot point of the trigger as a center, and which has been found to be objectionable since it permits the trigger to jar down under a sharp blow. An absolutely fiat surface is also very objectionable due to the fact that it Will not permit light coi1l to operate the switch arm 12, and furthermore its corners tend to catch on the edge of the switch arm 12 and interfere with the return of the trigger to normal.

, Upon the falling of a coin through the hopper 5, the arm 7 of the trigger is forced downward and the projection 11 is rotated in a counter-cloclnvise direction, allowing the switch arm 12 andits depending arm l t to be moved for operating contact springs 15. l/Vhen the device is restored, the switch arm 12 is raised free of the cam surface 11 and the trigger rotates in a clockwise direction due to the fact that the weight of the U-shaped portion 16 is slightly greater than that of the arm 7. The rotation of the trigger is then arrested by the free end portion of the spring 17 coming in contact with the rigid supporting member 9. It will be seen that upon the downward movement of the trigger imparted through the falling of the coin in the hopper, the camming portion of the projection 11 will tend to raise the arm 12 against the resistance of spring 15, but due to the fact that the arcuated surface of the cam is generated by a Single radius, the rising of the arm 12 is at any time proportional to the angular distance described by the projection 11 which makes this device very sensitive while preventing the closing of the contacts through the accidental tripping of the arm 12 by jars imparted to the instrument.

The invention claimed is:

1. A coin actuated device comprising a supporting member, a trigger pivotally mounted thereon, a projecting member on said trigger having a cam surface, generated by a radius ec'centrically disposed with respect to the pivotal point of said trigger and a switch controlling arm adapted to be held under tension on said cam and to be released upon the movement of said trigger by the fall of a coin on said trigger.

2. A coin actuated device comprising a supporting member, a trigger pivotally ,mounted thereon, a projecting member on said trigger having a cam surface obtained by describing an arc the center of which is on a line running vertically through the pivot point of the trigger, and a switch controlling arm adapted to rest on and to be released by the movement of said cam.

3. A coin actuated device comprising a supporting member, a trigger pivotally mounted thereon, a projecting member having a cam surface extending further on one side of the pivot point of said trigger than on the other and obtained by describing an arc the center of which is on a line running vertically through and below the pivot point of the trigger, and a switch controlling arm adapted to rest on and to be released by the movement of said cam.

4:. A coin actuated device comprising a sup porting member, a trigger pivotally mounted thereon, a projecting member on said trigger having a cam surface obtained by describing an arc with a radius of .480 having its center on a line running vertically through and .167 below the pivot point of the trigger, and a switch controlling arm adapted to rest on and to be released by the movement of said cam.

In witness'whereof, I hereunto subscribe my name this 20 day of March A. 1)., 1923.

CLYDE H. WVHEELER. 

